So Anyway
by Links Only Grl
Summary: Bruce becomes distant, eventually taking in a new ward, so Dick decides it time to move on. But moving on isn't so easy when a new league of enemies show up and target Dick Grayson! DaddyBats later on, I promise! No OCs
1. So Anyway, I'm Leaving

**A/N: Hello my dear readers! This is based off of the new season of Young Justice, titled Invasion. As you all know, Dick Grayson has become Nightwing, but why happened in the 5 years between the beginning of the Team, and the rise of Nightwing? This is simply my take on it, and about Dick growing up and leaving. I hope you all enjoy!**

**Also, this story is written in Dick's POV**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice, or any of the characters shown. They all belong to DC and Warner Bros.**

**So Anyway**

I sat on the hill outside of Wayne Manor and watched the boy walking up the steps. It had been 2 years since Vandal Savage took control of the Justice League, and we discovered that the Roy Harper we thought we knew was a clone, and the real Roy was most likely dead.

I was 15, and a good 2 or 3 inches taller than when we first started. Kaldur vanished one day, and was never heard from again. The clone of Roy Harper still remained Red Arrow, and was a part of the Justice League. Wally and Artemis were still going strong. Everybody knew it was bound to happen. Zatanna and I never lasted. We had one kiss, and realized that it was ridiculous, seeing as how she knew nothing about me, and we were both so vulnerable, and still trying to figure out what we were supposed to do without parents. Rocket had been searching for Kaldur, hoping to find him somewhere, but he was still MIA.

I pulled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them, watching as Bruce walked outside and shook the young boy's hand. The boy's name was Tim. He was 11 years old, and had once lived with his father. While we were patrolling one night, however, the boys father was murdered, and Bruce took it upon himself to help the boy.

I felt a tinge of jealously as I saw the boy wrap his arms around bruce's middle and shove his head into my mentor's stomach. Bruce hugged the boy back, made eye contact with me, and turned away. He had been distant from me lately, and I couldn't stand it. We fought a lot, and he called me worthless on several occasions. I knew he didn't mean it, but it still hurt more than anything.

I lay back on the hill and rolled onto my side, lost in thought. It was April. 6 years ago, my parents were murdered. I was given a second family, but it seemed I was outliving my stay. I always thought Bruce was a great, loving, caring man, but since he lost that time back on New Years Eve 2 years back, he was never the same. He didn't come running when I had nightmares, didn't ruffle my hair like her used to, or come to my mathletes tournaments.

Bruce led the boy inside and Alfred closed the door behind the, carrying Tim's bag. I began crying into my green sweatshirt sleeve, which I had found myself doing a lot. It never got easier like I thought it would. The past 2 years had been the worst, though, without Bruce to comfort me, and guide me through the painful anniversary.

I found myself walking to the cemetery on my own, as Bruce wasn't bringing me anymore. I actually fell asleep at their grave one night, and woke up to Bruce standing over me, shaking his head in disapproval.

I drifted off to sleep on the hill, the tears still making their way down my cheeks as my eyes shut, my arm acting as a pillow.

I woke up and saw Tim standing over me, wearing my old clothes. He looked just like me, with his black hair, his small build, and the sad look in his eyes.

"You're Dick, right?" he asked, and I nodded. "Bruce asked me to come get you. He wants you to come inside."

I collected my thoughts and looked around, realizing that it was dark out, the only light coming from posts around the yard. "What time is it?" I asked, standing up and brushing the dirt from my pants and sweatshirt.

"8:30, I think," Tim replied, before walking back down the hill.

I cursed and went back to the house. I missed dinner. Bruce was gonna kill me.

"Where have you been?" Bruce asked as I walked inside, not missing a beat. "You missed dinner."

"I fell asleep, I'm sorry," I said, walking past him and to the stairs.

"Don't want away from me, Richard!" he snapped.

"What else am I supposed to say?" I asked, pivoting to face him. "Sorry I messed up, oh high and mighty one?"

"I don't want that kind of attitude coming from you, Dick."

I didn't say anything. I was being stupid, but this was what our relationship had become over the past couple of years; yelling and fighting, making nitty comebacks to each other.

"What's gotten into you?" he asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"I wanna go to my room," I said, turning my head away from him.

"Don't you want dinner?"

I shook my head, still not looking at him. My hair fell in front of my eyes now, which I did on purpose, so he wouldn't see the tears in moments like these. "Not hungry."

He removed his hand and I bolted up the stairs, not looking back as I ran into my room, kicked off my Converse All Stars and dove onto the bed, grabbing the massive teddy bear and resting my face on it. The bear was a gift from my parents, shortly before they died. We had the night off, so we decided to enjoy the circus, and see what it was like on the outside, so my dad won it for me. Of course, to a 9 year old, it was much more exciting, but now it was all I had left of them, besides the poster that hung on the wall.

I eventually fell asleep again, but I wished I hadn't. I was greeted with the same nightmare I had every night at this time of year; snap, scream, crack. The scene repeated itself in my mind over and over, and I could see Zucco in the corner, hear his laughter as it echoed above the screams coming from the audience.

This time, though, I didn't scream for my parents, as they fell to their deaths. I screamed for Bruce. Over and over, begging for him to save them. To save me from the loneliness. I woke up screaming his name, sweating and crying. I heard footsteps running through the hall and listened carefully, praying that it wasn't my imagination.

I almost smiled as I heard the steps getting closer and closer to the door. He cared. He was coming to tell me it was gonna be ok, which was something I hadn't heard since I was 13. Louder, louder, but then… quieter, quieter… I listened and heard a small voice, also crying out my mentor's name. Tim.

I couldn't take it. One night and I was already hating this kid. I knew it wasn't his fault, but I couldn't deal with this every night. He needed Bruce too, and I should have been ok. I mean, 6 years was a long time… but it's also a short time.

I knew what I had to do the next morning, so I went back to sleep, praying that there wouldn't be anymore nightmares.

I woke up before anyone else and got ready for the day. I grabbed a quick breakfast before going out. I knew exactly where to go to find what I was looking for, all the information I needed, and how to tell Bruce.

I got home and found Bruce eating breakfast with Tim. It was about 9 on a Saturday morning.

"Bruce, can I talk to you?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably. I knew it had to be done, but I was scared at the same time. What if he said no?

"Go ahead," he said.

"Um… in private?" I asked, glancing to Tim. Bruce caught my look and nodded, standing from the table.

"Wait here, Tim," he said, and lead me to his office. "What's bothering you?"

"Bruce… I…" I choked back the tears that were threatening to spill over. I stiffened my shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes. "I want to file for emancipation."

Bruce smiled for a second, but realized that I wasn't laughing with him. "You're serious." he said, running a hand through his hair.

"Dick, whatever it is, we can work through it. We can figure it out! We'll get help, we-"

"I don't need help!" I yelled, amazed at how angry I was with him. "I want my parents back, Bruce!"

"And you think this is going to bring them back?"

"I…"

"Dick, you're 15! Nobody is gonna give you a job! You'll be living on the streets."

"I can live in the mountain," I said. "I can switch to Gotham North, or maybe a school in Happy Harbor. I'll find a way to make money!"

"How, by performing on the streets, doing gymnastics?"

"I'll figure something out," I said, turning away from him.

Bruce sighed and sat at his desk, "Dick, where did this even come from?"

I didn't reply, so he asked again. I still didn't reply. "Is this about Tim? Dick, he's not replacing you! He needs help. You of all people should know what it's like!"

"I do know, Bruce! He'd be better off if I wasn't here. He needs Bruce Wayne, I need Batman… it's too much to ask for. You should know what it's like, though… know how it feels to relive the day when your parents were murdered…"

"It's been 6 years," he started.

"To the day," I said, and he had a dumb look on his face. "6 years to the day. You wanna know why I didn't come in last night? Because I couldn't face you, Bruce. I couldn't let you see me like that…"

"Why couldn't I see, Dick?"

"Because…" I started, but lowered my voice to below a whisper. "Batman doesn't cry."

"Dick, you don't need to be Batman," he said, standing up and wrapping his arms around me. I didn't cry. I couldn't. I hadn't cried in front of Bruce in 2 years, and I wasn't about to start again.

I pulled away from him and pulled papers out of my pocket. "I got these this morning," said, handing them to him. "I just need your approval, then we can take it to court."

"I'm not going to sign these, Dick," he said, ripping the papers in half. He put a hand on my shoulder. "You can live at the mountain. I won't bother you, unless it's professional. But please, Dick, if you need anything, tell me. You're staying at GA, though."

I nodded. I knew the loss of his ward would be bad for publicity, but he also seemed heartbroken by what was happening. "I'll go pack my things."

"I'll have Alfred make you some cookies to bring with you."

Within an hour I had everything ready to go. I brought my two bags and bear down to the Batcave, where Alfred stood with a plate of cookies. He gave me a hug and handed me the plate.

"Be careful, Master Richard," he said, and I could feel wet spots forming on the top of my head.

"Call me Dick, Al," I told him. "I'm no Master anymore. Take care of Bruce for me, will ya?"

"I will, Dick," he said, and released his grip around me, holding me an arm width away. "You've grown so much over these past 6 years."

I turned around when I heard footsteps. Bruce came over and wrapped his arms around me. I hugged him back, finally letting tears fall. He ruffled my hair one last time and said, "You always have a home here, no matter what. And if you need anything at all, tell me."

"I will," I whispered through the tears. I pulled away finally and picked up my bags and the bear which had become my closest friend over the years and walked over to the zeta tube. "Time to fly," I said with a sad smile. I donned my sunglasses and stepped through the tube, not looking back as light erupted around me…

**If you enjoyed it, or cried as much as I did, then please, review! Also, this is based off the song So Anyway from Next to Normal, which is an amazing musical. Look it up, because it's really sad! :**


	2. I Thought You'd like to Know

**Warning, this will contain spoilers for Nightwing # 7 and #8, along with Batman #7 and #8… I'm not sure if the others had to do with these guys yet, but there will be some spoilers for the New 52 Comics (Mainly Nightwing)**

**Disclaimer for the thing I forgot to disclaim in the last chapter; I do not own the chapter titles, or the name of the story! They are from the musical Next to Normal, and I do not own them… Check out the musical though! It's really awesome!**

I Thought You'd like to Know

I was still crying when I walked into the mountain, through the Zeta Tube. There was no turning back. Mount Justice was my home now. There would be no Bruce, no Alfred, no hill in the yard, just me, a Martian, a Kryptonian clone, a girl I kissed 2 years before, and a heartless robot. Well, emotionless, more like. Red Tornado had corrected me before on calling him "heartless."

"Robin," M'gann exclaimed, floating over before I could compose myself. "What brings you here?" She stopped short and stared at me for a few seconds, before kicking off into a faster glide, wrapping her arms around me as soon as she was close enough.

We lowered ourselves to the floor and sat in silence for a long while as I sobbed into her shoulder, unable to stop myself anymore. There was no point being secretive with M'gann and Conner now that I was living with them.

"I'm sorry," I finally said.

"Robin, you have nothing to be sorry for," said said, tightening her grip around my shoulders. Over the past 2 years, M'gann had somehow gotten more in tune with human emotions than before, so it was impossible to hide anything from her, but she also learned the human methods of comforting people.

"I uh… I hope you guys don't mind, but I'm gonna be moving in…" I said after another few minutes of silence.

"It'll be fun!" She said, lifting me onto my feet and using her powers to lift my bags and the plate of cookies from the floor. "We'll go pick out a room!"

We walked into the main hall, and she kept an arm around me the entire time. She didn't even need to know the whole story to know that something happened with Batman.

"Here, this one is right across from Conner's," she said, motioning to the door. I pulled it open, revealing a small room with a full sized bed and a dresser. The League really kept everything stocked up in case something happened.

We walked in and she lowered my stuff to the ground. "Wanna go say hi to the others?" she asked.

"I'm gonna stay here for a little bit; I had a long night last night," I said.

M'gann nodded and put the cookies in her hands, "I'll bring these to the kitchen and tell the others not to bother you."

I nodded and watched as she left. I lifted the stuffed bear from the ground and climbed onto the bed with it, wrapping my arms around the soft material and burying my face in it. I was glad M'gann hadn't asked about it. I knew she wouldn't judge, but it was still strange for a 15 year old to have a stuffed animal-a very run down, tear stained one, at that.

I drifted off to sleep, greeted yet again by nightmares. Six years to the day, the sounds never faded; snap, scream, crack. Zucco's laughter as his point was made, the screams from the audience. Again, I didn't cry for my parents, but for Bruce, over and over again, begging him to take me home and tell it was going to be ok. Then suddenly it was me falling, tumbling down after them, twirling as I screamed, my lungs hurting as my voice couldn't get any louder, screaming for Bruce to catch me.

Maybe it was the sound of the door opening that woke me up, or maybe it was Conner calling my name, "Robin! Robin!" over and over, while M'gann was pulling me into her arms, tears streaming down her face as she was overwhelmed by the emotions in the small room. I shot up, still begging for Bruce to save me from my plummet.

My panic levels only grew higher as I realized that I was no longer wearing my sunglasses; they must have fallen off while I was sleeping. M'gann was stroking my hair, and it seemed like such a pitiful moment Robin, the Boy Wonder, beaten by a nightmare.

"Robin," Conner said quietly. "You're eyes…"

I nodded, slightly pulling away from M'gann. "Guess it doesn't matter now, does it?" I asked, running a hand through my hair.

"Are you finally gonna tell us your name?" M'gann asked, perking up at the thought.

I nodded, "My name is Dick Grayson," I started. "Six years ago today, my parents were murdered."

"So Batman isn't your father then," Superboy stated, as if answering a long asked question.

"No, but he is my legal guardian. Batman's counterpart, or Bruce Wayne, was there when my parents were killed. See, we were a part of Haly's Circus, and-"

"You guys were the Flying Graysons!" M'gann exclaimed. "I saw the posters when we were there. That's why you were so defensive of Mr. Haly!"

I nodded, "Jack Haly was like my grandfather growing up. And, as you guys probably figured out, Batman didn't send us on that mission, either."

"How did your parents die?" Superboy asked, taking a seat on the bed with us.

"This gangster, Tony Zucco came by while we were in Gotham. He wanted Haly to pay him "protection money", or something bad would happen. Haly didn't believe him, and sent him away, but later that night, we were doing our finale, where we would perform without a net. Zucco put acid on the lines, and the snapped. My parents, cousin, aunt and uncle all fell. My uncle survived, but he was completely paralyzed, so he couldn't take care of me."

"So Bruce Wayne took you in and made you Robin," Conner said.

"I chose to become Robin," I corrected. "Bruce offered me a chance to bring Zucco to justice, and I took it."

"So Bruce adopted you then?" M'gann asked, unfamiliar with the term "ward".

"He offered, but I declined. I didn't want a new father, I wanted my real one back. So Bruce took me in as his ward, so he's my legal guardian, but not my father."

We sat in silence for a few minutes, when M'gann placed a hand on my knee and smiled, "Wanna go get a pizza or something?"

"That would be nice."

"I'll get Zatanna," Superboy said, taking his leave.

When M'gann and I met up with Zatanna and Conner, the young magician didn't ask about my lack of sunglasses, simply wrapped her arms around me and whispered, "I'm so sorry," which means that Conner told her the story. Or at least part of it.

We told Red Tornado where we were going and that we would be back in an hour or so, and he gave his approval. We walked through Happy Harbor to a pizza place where M'gann and Conner had gone to on their dates. It was only about 15 minutes away from the mountain, and there wasn't much of a wait, which was surprising for a Saturday.

We ordered the pizza and sat around a small round table in silence, able to take our time enjoying the pizza without Wally around. After about a half an hour, we stepped out of the small restaurant, and I found myself laughing with my friends.

I paused as I felt something fly pass my head, looking around hurriedly to see what it was. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw blood. I turned toward the sight and saw a woman with a small dagger protruding from her stomach, gasping in pain.

"We've got trouble!" I called to the others, running toward the woman, who was losing blood quickly for such a small wound. I pulled out my phone and called an ambulance, trying to calm down the panicking woman.

"Calm down," I urged her. "I need to take the knife out, ok? I need you to take deep breaths, and try to calm down."

She nodded briefly, and I got a grip on the knife, pulling it out. I dropped it on the ground next to me and began to apply pressure to the wound.

"Robin, we have a problem," M'gann cried, pointing up at a silhouette standing on top of a building.

_Batman?_ I asked myself, seeing small ear shapes sticking up above the mask. No, not Batman. Batman wouldn't have attacked someone, not in cold blood. Before I knew what was happening next, another knife whizzed right by me, making a "thud" as it embedded itself into the woman's skull.

"Her name was Mary," the man said, jumping down from the roof top and walking over to me. "Today was a good day for her to die, is it not, Richard John Grayson?"

…to be continued!

**Ok, soooo anyone who has a guess who this bad guy is (and even his secret ID, too, which will be revealed at some point in here…) gets a big ol' fanfiction hug!**

**Also, I listened to Sailor Moon and Gundam Wing music while I wrote the second half… yeah, be jealous!**


	3. Your Faithful Come what May

**So um, at this moment, I think only 2 people have guessed who the bad guy is! I've heard 3 other guesses, which were Tony Zucco, Slade, and Joker. But guys, I mean, Joker? I've already done 3 stories with him! haha well, we're just gonna have to find out now!**

Your Faithful "Come What May"

I stared in shock at the man towering over me. Now that he was closer, I could clearly make out his costume; it looked like an owl! His mask had large, blue eyes, a yellow beak, and yellow strands that went over his head, making him look like an owl. He wore all black and had a brown strap going from his shoulder to his side, loaded with knives. He also had knives on either hip, and two machetes strapped to his back.

"How did you-"

"How did I know your name?" he asked. "That your mother's name was Mary, and today is the 6 year anniversary of her death?" He kneeled down in front of me and grabbed my face in one of his gloves hands, "I know everything about you, Richard. You should have been-"

I lifted myself onto my arms and kicked him square in the chest, sending him flying back before he could finish. "Been what?" I asked.

He chuckled quietly, and I motioned for the others not to attack, "You've been trained well, Boy Wonder. But you're still vulnerable. You can still be directed towards your true destiny."

"What true destiny?" I questioned, but he dropped a smoke bomb and was nowhere to be seen.

The last thing he said was "Tell Batman that the Court of Owls will have their way," as he vanished through the smoke.

"We could have taken him," Conner said.

"No, we couldn't have," I said, looking at Mary's lifeless body. "He was able to hit her twice from his point up there, throwing knives. Besides; he knew who I am. I hate to say it, but… we need to call Batman."

When we reached the Mountain, we told Red Tornado about the mysterious man, and he agreed that calling Batman was the best course of action.

I pulled up the webcam and dialed up the Watch Tower. The call was immediately answered by Batman, who seemed none-too happy to be hearing from me so soon.

"What's the problem?" he asked, straight to the point, as usual.

"We have a situation here," I told him. "We were attacked-"

"I'll be right over."

A few minutes later, the Zeta Tubes were announcing the arrival of Batman. He glared at me when he saw my lack of sunglasses, then started looking me over, not seeming to care that the other three heroes were watching in amazement. "What happened?"

"We went out for a little bit and this guy in a weird owl costume attacked us. He said to tell you that the Court of Owls would-"

Bruce spun on his heels and walked to the Zeta Tubes, so I ran after him, "Bruce, where are you going?"

He stopped and sighed, obviously not wanting to answer my question.

"What's the Court of Owls?" I asked quietly.

"I had a run in with them after you became Robin, when I had you resign after the accident with Two-Face."

"What happened?"

"They wanted you," he said. "They wanted Dick Grayson."

I stared at him in shock, "Why would they want Dick Grayson?"

"The man who contacted me; his name was William Cobb. He told me that you belong to the Court of Owls. When I refused to give you to them, he said that he would be back. Didn't say when, just that he would."

"I'll tell him I don't want to go with him, then," I said. "They can't make me!"

"Dick, these people can do whatever the hell they want. They have sources, know people."

"They killed a woman, Bruce," I said. "We can't let them keep doing this."

"They were trying to prove a point to you," Bruce warned. "They want to scare you into obedience."

I weighed my options and realized that they really weren't going to leave me alone so easily. "Bruce, what if they kill you?" I asked, fear sinking in. "What about Tim, and Babs?"

"We'll figure something out," he said, putting a hand on my shoulder, obviously not wanting to get too close.

"Bruce, I saw this guy hit a woman dead in the face from a rooftop! He could kill you."

"Their training could kill you," Bruce said. "The things they put people through are inhumane."

"But if I don't die, then you will! Wally will die… Babs will die."

"Barbara and Wally can handle themselves. I can handle myself, Dick, you know that."

"I can't lose you, too," I said. Nothing else was said; nothing had to be as Bruce wrapped his strong, muscled arms around my body.

The small gesture spoke more than we could ever verbalize. It showed the worried father side of him. I realized how much I was going to miss this not living at the manor, but I reminded myself that Tim needed him more than I did.

"You should get back to Tim," I finally said, breaking the silence. "I'll be fine here."

Bruce looked me over quietly, "If anything happens, if you get any more messages from the Court of Owls, call me. Call the League, anyone. We're all here for you."

I nodded, "I'll be sure to call if anything happens, don't worry. Besides, I have M'gann and Conner with me, and they're the powerhouses of the team." I smiled at him as if it would make him feel better about the situation.

He smiled back, "The rest of the team will be here tomorrow for training."

Bruce turned and left through one of the zeta tubes, leaving me by myself. I stood there for a minute, watching as the light in the tunnel faded.

I went back to my room and lay down on my bed, staring at the ceiling, not focusing on anything in particular. My brain kept bouncing back from any train of thought I had, receding into the state between sleep and awake, where nothing made sense. Nothing mattered.

The only thought that actually stuck was about the Court of Owls. What if Bruce failed? What if they killed him? I wouldn't let that happen. If it got too close to that point, I would give myself to them.

I got up and pulled my backpack from my closet and put two pairs of jeans and two sweatshirts in it. I then snuck quietly from my room and made my way to the kitchen. I opened up one of the cabinets and found some protein bars. I picked up my water bottle from the counter and returned to my room, placing them in the bag. I was ready to leave if I had to.

I picked up one of my books for school and began reading. Even with a group of assassins after me, I still had to keep up my grades. Welcome to the life of a teenage superhero.

A week passed before I heard from Bruce, I would see him at school every day, going to pick up Tim, but not Friday. Tim came to me in a panic, instead, at the end of the day.

"Dick, Dick!" he screamed, running to me before I left with Artemis, who also knew my identity now.

"What is it, Tim?" I asked him, holding a hand to pause Artemis.

"Alfred just called. Bruce, he-"

"He what, Tim?" I demanded, grabbing his small arms before I could stop myself.

"He was attacked, just this morning, in his office. They left a note."

"What was the note about?"

Tim looked at me blankly for a minute and tears began streaming down his face, "You," he said sadly. "They want you."


End file.
